The Best Bottled Italian Dressing, Tasted & Ranked

Italian dressing is a classic go-to for salad lovers. Usually made with oil, vinegar, lemon juice, and a variety of herbs and spices, it's a simple complement to veggies that helps bring out their natural flavors.

The grocery store shelves are lined with varieties of Italian dressings. I picked up eight different brands to try them out and see which one was best.

Some of the Italian dressings I tried were low in calories, but I found that those were usually the ones lacking in taste. Instead of being fearful of caloric dressing, my policy is to use a truly delicious one, which will get you wanting to eat more salads and veggies!

I rated each of these Italian dressings on looks and taste and was surprised to see how this simple recipe varied so greatly between brands. Read on to see eight store-bought Italian dressings ranked from worst to best.

Organicville Italian Vinaigrette & Marinade

This salad dressing says on the bottle that there is no added salt and that it's "herbal with a hint of zest." It cost $4.99.

The look: This brown dressing had a sludgy appearance. From the looks of it, I would be wary to pour it on my salad. Maybe it would be OK as a chicken marinade?

The taste: This salad dressing had a strange, sweet taste, and that made more sense when I saw that the first ingredient in this dressing is organic apple juice. I am confused by this dressing and will not be eating it again.

Rating: 1/10

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Kraft Zesty Italian Dressing

This Italian dressing is the one you see at big parties poured over lettuce and tomatoes. It's anything but subtle and what most people probably associate with Italian dressing. It was priced at $2.99.

The look: Kraft Italian has a decidedly syrupy, orange look that's close in appearance to duck sauce with lots of visible spices.

The taste: This dressing was indeed zesty, but too vinegary and syrupy. I would sooner mix up my own dressing than pour this on a salad.

Rating: 2/10

Wishbone Zesty Robusto Italian Dressing

This dressing looks like a close cousin of Kraft. The bottle says they "added even more garlic, oregano and Italian zestiness." Whoa! It was priced at $2.19.

The look: This dressing looked thick and syrupy and had lots of visible spices.

The taste: Wishbone dressing was less vinegary than Kraft and a touch sweeter. It still made me think of motor oil, and I wouldn't choose to put it on my lunch.

Rating: 2.5/10

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Briannas Italian Vinaigrette Dressing

Briannas is one of my favorite dressing brands, so I had high hopes for this one, which contains chopped green olives and grated romano cheese. It was priced at $4.79.

The look: This dressing was very light in color, and I had to shake it vigorously to get all the spices into my taste test.

The taste: I liked that this dressing was less syrupy than many of the others I sampled, but the overwhelming vinegar taste hit the back of my throat in an overly aggressive way. In the end, this one was just too harsh.

Rating: 3/10

Stonewall Kitchen Classic Italian Dressing

Stonewall Kitchen says that this dressing is made with quality olive oil, tangy red wine vinegar, and "just the right spices." At $8.49, it was the priciest dressing I tried (and also the most caloric).

The look: This dressing had a very thin consistency with lots of dark spices visible.

The taste: Stonewall Kitchen calls this a dressing or marinade, and it's very oregano-forward—so much so that it was the only spice I could taste. I think this would be better over pasta salad than on a regular salad.

Rating: 4/10

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Olive Garden Signature Italian Dressing

I hesitated to buy this Olive Garden-brand salad dressing due to some PTSD from eating too many breadsticks at the popular Italian chain, but I decided to give it a try. It costs $4.99.

The look: Olive Garden's dressing was an interesting opaque yellow color. It almost looked like the color of an egg yolk.

The taste: This dressing was surprisingly good! It was light and salty and just a touch too vinegary, and it made me think of going back to OG sometime for salad.

Rating: 5/10

Ken's Steakhouse Italian Dressing & Marinade

Ken's is known for great dressings, and this recipe was famously made by Ken's mother-in-law, who combined oil, vinegar, garlic, and onion for a winning combination. The price for this dressing was $2.49 on sale.6254a4d1642c605c54bf1cab17d50f1e

The look: This dressing looked clear in color—there were no spices to be seen, except maybe some garlic. This was a remarkable contrast to all the other dressings, which were dotted with spices.

The taste: This dressing was light, simple, and delicious with flavors of garlic at the forefront. I think it could have used some other spices, but it was good!

Rating: 7/10

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Newman's Own Family Recipe Italian

Newman's Own Italian is made with real cheese and looked the most appealing in the bottle with an abundance of spices settled on the bottom and oil on top. It was on sale for $4.69.

The look: This dressing looked thin, light in color, and very peppery.

The taste: Newman's Own had a delicious, light taste that would enhance any salad without overwhelming it. I could taste the pepper and the cheese, and both were delightful additions. When it came down to it, Newman's got the balance of Italian exactly right.

Rating: 8/10